Multiple Perspectives on Difficulties in Learning Literacy and Numeracy (eBook)

Acknowledgements 5
Contents 6
Contributors 8
About the Authors 10
List of Figures 17
List of Tables 19
1 Theoretical Frameworks and Ways of Seeing: Operating at the Intersection---Literacy, Numeracy and Learning Difficulties 21
The plan of the book 24
Reading this book 31
What are demands for literacy and numeracy learning in the 21st century? 32
References 33
2 Learning Difficulties, Literacy and Numeracy: Conversations Across the Fields 36
Introduction 36
Defining learning difficulties, literacy and numeracy 37
Learning difficulties---changing perspectives 39
Literacy today---competing views 42
Skills-based versus whole-language approaches 43
Print-based approach versus multiliteracies 44
Numeracy today---varying perspectives 46
Towards a complementarity of views in numeracy 49
Effective provision for students with learning difficulties: what the major studies tell us 51
What works 52
Conclusion 58
Essential next questions 59
How much and to what extent should direct, explicit instruction of phonics (including phonemic awareness) be prioritised over other skills and strategies, and when should it be part of the reading instruction? 59
How best to orchestrate a combination of approaches for effective literacy and numeracy learning? 59
What are the optimum processes for both inservice and pre-service education? 60
References 60
3 Researching the Opportunities for Learning for Students with Learning Difficulties in Classrooms: An Ethnographic Perspective 68
Constructing a telling case 69
Selecting Sergio as a tracer unit 71
Theoretical assumptions governing the telling case 72
Roots and routes of the conceptual system 72
Phase 1: 1960--1980s in the United States context 74
Phase 2: 1980s--1990s: multiple-perspective research and expanding ethnographic studies in classrooms 76
Phase 3: curriculum, discourse and the social construction of knowledge 77
Decision point 1: from whose point(s) of view will the telling case be constructed 79
The archive as text: bounding the telling case 79
Constructing an anchor for the telling case: the Island History Project essay 82
Reading the world(s) of the classroom: multiple actors, multiple readers and multiple points of viewing 83
Constructing the physical world 84
The class as a developing text: What Sergio contributed towards and had available to read 86
Sergio as a tracer unit: uncovering the first chain of events of the school day 86
Testing the prediction: mapping the flow of conduct of the first day of the Watermelon Project 92
Forward mapping: the Island History Project 94
Complementary perspectives as material resources: some final comments 99
Essential next questions 100
How can researchers build programs of research that use complementary methods to examine the impact of decisions and actions within and across times, actors and events that support and constrain opportunities for learning and inclusive practices for teachers and students? 100
How and where can the everyday work and accomplishments of students in classrooms that make visible differing levels of competence enter into the assessment process for students and how can these accomplishments be related to the opportunities for learning afforded them in classrooms? 101
How might new theoretical and technological resources be used by both teacher and students to help students, teachers, administrators and policy makers see the developing competencies? 101
References 102
4 The New Literacies of Online Reading Comprehension: New Opportunities and Challenges for Students with Learning Difficulties 110
Theoretical perspective 112
New literacies: a dual-level theory 112
The new literacies of online reading comprehension 113
Why do struggling readers sometimes perform well during online reading 115
These students are often good at locating information 115
The Internet requires the reading of shorter text units, a benefit to struggling readers 115
The Internet permits readers to construct their own texts, a benefit to struggling readers 115
The Internet provides supportive multimedia features for struggling readers 116
Struggling offline readers often develop their online reading skills at home 116
Electronic organisational tools often provide important supports for struggling readers 116
Case studies of struggling readers 116
Michael 117
Leslie 119
Jessica 121
Larry 122
Reconsidering online reading instruction for struggling readers 124
Essential next questions 125
References 125
5 Literacy, Technology and the Internet: What Are the Challenges and Opportunities for Learners with Reading Difficulties, and How Do We Support Them in Meeting Those Challenges and Grasping Those Opportunities? 130
Introduction---theres just no rabbits on the Internet 130
What are the skills that readers need to acquire for the 21st century, and how should they be taught? 131
What types of software can support the teaching of literacy and the development of literacy 133
Supporting beginning reading---Internet optional 133
Supporting knowledge creation: the Internet as knowledge source 137
Supporting text production: mind maps, concept maps and writing 140
Supporting Web 2.0 communities of readers: RealeBooks 144
How do new technologies change and extend the teachers role 146
Essential next questions 149
References 150
6 Essential Provisions for Quality Learning Support: Connecting Literacy, Numeracy and Learning Needs 151
Part 1: theoretical framing and definitions 152
Sociocultural perspective and learning support 152
Effective learning support provision 153
The role of leadership, networks and support 154
Leadership 154
Networks 155
Support 155
The essential role of effective communication 156
Students with difficulties in learning 156
Part 2: methodological approach and sites 158
Case-study methodology 158
Cross-case analysis leading to identification of key features 158
Part 3: key features of effective support provision 159
Leadership 159
Leadership drives support initiatives 159
Strategic decision-making assists in managing student diversity 160
Strategic decision-making assists in managing physical space and learning support image 161
Networks 162
Consultative committees form for decision-making 163
Networks of support personnel plan, implement and assess support 164
Support 164
Scope of provision: who are the students? 165
Literacy, numeracy and the curriculum: central to support 166
Support comprises a range of approaches and programs 166
Assessment and evaluation inform support provision 169
The challenge for schools 173
Essential next questions 174
Student agency 174
Parent, student, school partnerships 174
Longitudinal tracking 175
References 175
7 'Reading' the Home and Reading in School: Framing Deficit Constructions as Learning Difficulties in Singapore English Classrooms 177
Introduction 177
Review of deficit thinking 178
Singapore's education system 179
The research context 181
Introducing the research project 181
Introducing Bukit Secondary School 182
Methodology 182
Introducing the two teachers: Mrs Tan and Mrs Chan 183
A multi-layered analysis of teacher's deficit constructions 183
Layer 1: analysing classroom interaction 184
Mrs Tan's comprehension lesson 184
Mrs Chan's Romeo and Juliet lesson 185
Layer 2: analysing teachers' beliefs 187
Teachers' beliefs about learning difficulties 187
Teachers' beliefs about their role as moral and cultural ballast 189
Layer 3: aligning teachers' beliefs with policy, social and institutional discourses 191
Learning difficulties 191
Moral and cultural ballasts 192
Essential next questions 193
Why do deficit beliefs persist, and who perpetuates them? 193
What 'deficiencies' matter to educators? 194
How can teachers break the deficit cycle? 194
References 195
8 Parent, Family and Community Support for Addressing Difficulties in Literacy 197
Introduction 197
Models of literacy acquisition: the reading process 198
Literacy: individual skill or social practice 199
Students' culture and the school 199
Home--school relationships 201
The 'expert' model 203
The 'transplant model' 204
The 'empowerment model' 205
The 'consumer model' 205
The 'negotiating model' 206
Family- and community-based literacy learning 207
Implications for teachers' professional development 209
Conclusion 210
Essential next questions 211
References 211
9 Enhancing Reading Comprehension Through Explicit Comprehending-Strategy Teaching 215
Introduction 215
The theoretical framework used to examine reading comprehension strategy use 215
Reading underachievers are less likely to use these comprehending strategies 216
Strategies for achieving each level of comprehension 217
Teaching the comprehending strategies 217
The focus in this chapter 218
The methodological approach used to research comprehending-strategy instruction 219
A naturalistic classroom study of teaching comprehending 219
Study 1: the influence of teaching visualising, predicting or paraphrasing 220
Results 222
Study 2: an alternative approach to teaching visualising 225
What the results mean for facilitating literacy learning for students who have learning difficulties 226
Essential next questions 227
References 228
10 The Writing Achievement, Metacognitive Knowledge of Writing and Motivation of Middle-School Students with Learning Difficulties 231
The importance of writing 231
Students with learning difficulties and writing 231
Theoretical models of literacy learning 232
Theoretical framing and the WriteIdeas Model 232
The WriteIdeas project 234
The study 235
Participants 235
Instruments 236
Achievement in writing 236
Metacognitive knowledge about writing 238
Motivation comprising writing attitude and self-perceptions about writing 238
Procedure 239
Data analyses 239
Results 240
Writing achievement 240
Metacognitive knowledge of writing 240
Motivation 244
Discussion 244
Limitations of the study and future research 246
Conclusion 247
Essential next questions 248
Intervention 248
Teacher professional development 248
References 250
11 The Role of Self-Monitoring in Initial Word-Recognition Learning 253
Grounded theory 253
Information sources 256
Developmental model 257
Variability of change 258
Path of change 259
Rate of change 260
Breadth of change 261
Source of change 261
Word-recognition instruction 262
Teaching difficulties 265
Beyond the debate 267
Essential next questions 267
References 269
12 Effective Instruction for Older, Low-Progress Readers: Meeting the Needs of Indigenous Students 272
Introduction 272
A simple model of reading disability 273
What is MULTILIT? 276
The Schoolwise Program 278
The progress of Aboriginal students in the Schoolwise Program 279
The MULTILIT project on Cape York 280
What we learned from the Coen trials 284
Essential next questions 286
References 288
13 Actualising Potential in the Classroom: Moving from Practising To Be Numerate Towards Engaging in the Literate Practice of Mathematics 291
Introduction 291
Transforming numeracy into literacy through engaging in mathematical practice 292
Understanding the notion of learning difficulty 294
Promoting mathematical literacy within the social context of an everyday classroom 296
Researching the development of literate practice in the mathematics classroom 297
Engaging all students in the literacy practice of mathematics: negotiating space and level of engagement within the everyday classroom 298
Promoting thinking through language in use within the everyday classroom 302
Developing an openness to learning 303
Discussion 304
Essential next questions 305
How can teachers integrate practice, feedback, modelling and explicit teaching with an approach to teaching that privileges reasoning and argumentation? 305
How can policy makers advocate the use by teachers of assessment tools that can assess and encourage student participation in the literacy practices of mathematics? 306
How might teacher development promote reflection on student and teacher participation in the literate practice of mathematics? 306
References 307
14 Effective Instruction in Mathematics for Students with Learning Difficulties 310
Student characteristics and mathematics achievement 311
A theoretical context for teaching and learning mathematics 312
Direct-instruction research 313
Cognitive-strategy instruction research 315
Instructional practices and procedures 318
Assessing and monitoring student progress 319
Determining and selecting effective instruction or best practice 320
Essential next questions 322
Who will benefit from the instructional program or practice? 322
What conditions are important for optimal results? 322
By whom should instruction be provided? 323
Glossary 324
References 325
15 Language, Culture and Learning Mathematics:INTnl A Bourdieuian Analysis of Indigenous Learning
'Learning difficulties' as symbolic violence 330
Structured failing: the field of school mathematics 332
Language, mathematics and linguistic capital 333
The role of language in mathematics learning 334
Language and worldviews 335
Language, habitus and capital 336
Linguistic capital: implications for learning mathematics 337
Prepositions in Kriol languages 339
Conclusion 340
Essential next questions 340
What practices can be developed to enable greater access to school mathematics? 341
How can we challenge and change the status quo around language barriers in school mathematics? 341
What are the implications of this work for teachers and teacher education? 341
Glossary 342
References 342
16 `She's Not in My Head or in My Body': Developing Identities of Exclusion and Inclusion in Whole-Class Discussions 344
Introduction 344
Methodology 346
The school 348
Jason's positioning in year 5W 348
Student agency in shaping learner identities 353
Becoming a participant/non-participant in whole-class discussions 354
Conclusion 356
Essential next questions 358
How might we support teachers in challenging the ?deficit assumptions? regarding student competence that are so prevalent in many classrooms and policy documents? 358
How might we enable students to have a ?voice? in defining classroom activities, lesson content and the behaviour(s) that come to be viewed as legitimate participation? 358
Glossary 359
References 360
17 Breaking Down the Silos: The Search for an Evidentiary Base 362
Overarching themes 363
Reflections 365
Conclusion 368
References 370
Author Index 371
Subject Index 381